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VPNational costumes, nyckelharpas, Dala horses and delicate bobbin lace—these

appear each spring at the Scandinavian Festival on the campus of California Lutheran

University in Thousand Oaks, California. Some 5,000 to 6,000 performers, vendors and

visitors have flocked to the campus each April for thirty-four years to celebrate the

Nordic heritage—the largest and oldest of such festivals on A me rica's W est Coast.

The festival begins with the Parade of Flags of the United States and the five

Scandinavian countries, as well as that of the Sami, and the singing of the national

anthems, followed by introductions of the consuls from the countries and other

dignitaries. With that begins two days of m usic, dancing, lectures, soccer matches, crafts,

food demonstrations, and a village market.

This popular event w as initiated by Swedish-American Armou r Nelson, Professor

of English and scholar of Scandinavian literature as well as Shakespeare, and John J.

No rdberg, Director of Estate Planning of the college (now unive rsity). They originated

the idea while playing golf near the camp us. Nelson had labored for years assembling an

important collection of Scandinavian literature and objects of art, and as they walked the

course, they thought of ideas to show off the beautiful campus, to display the

Scandinavian items in Arken, the archives of the library, and to celebrate the

Scandinavian roots of California Lutheran College.

Nelson wrote in 1983 that, "I told John that I thought an open house exhibit with a

scholarly lecture on some Scandinavian topics could inform the people about our

Scandinavian heritage." Nelson said: "John loved a good show and immediately

suggested adding folk dancers and a smorgasbord." A comm ittee was formed, and on

February 9, 1974, the first festival was held, attracting 600 people to the campu s. The

consuls from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden added their greetings and

support to the event.

The exhibits, craft demonstrations and programs were all held in the school's

gymnasium, and food booths with krumkaka and Swedish pancakes were set up in the

space between the gymnasium and Student Center. The Drama Department enactedstories from H ans Christian An dersen nearby. Dan cers from v arious Scandinavian clubs

in the Los Angeles area added music and color to the event. It was so successful that

Nordberg remarked: "We just m ay do this again next year." The committee agreed, and

the festival bec ame an annual affair.

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Swedish-American Aina Abrahamson, the college librarian for many years andthe editor of The Almanac, Journal of the Swedish American Historical Association of

California, was on the original planning committee and saw the dramatic growth inattendance. Said Abrahamson, "Th e festival seemed to catch on by word of mouth andgrew each year." She was responsible for bringing the Vasa Hambo dance contest about,where contestants danced in pairs under the discerning eyes not only of the judges but ofthe crowds gathered to watch.

Formerly sponsored by the American Scandinavian Foundation of ThousandOaks, the festival now is administered by the Scandinavian American Cultural andHistorical Foundation (SACHF), which also backs the Nordic Spirit Symposium and theScandinavian Center on campu s. Said Jim Gulbranson, who had participated in thefestival since the beginning, "The festival is more than just eating Swedish meatballs orwatching dan cers in traditional clothes ." He saw it as an opportunity to teach peopleabout the Scandinavian cultures—and to have fun too! This year's co-directors, the hard

working, well-organized Lana Lundin (who, with her husband, Lars, a Vice President ofVolvo, lives part of each year in Gothenberg) and Eric Berg, saw to it that the festivalwas "affordable family fun," and attractive to kids as well as their parents andgrandpa rents. The prices were $5 for adults, and no charge for children under elevenyears old.

An especially merry time is during the raising of the tall majstang (Maypole),accompanied by the traditional singing and dancing while making gestures of scrubbinglaundry, jum ping like frogs, etc., around the festooned po le. In addition to displays anddemonstrations, there are a typical "Swedish Marketplace" that extends along theboulevard next to the beautiful Kingsmen Park, concerts of Nordic folk music under alarge tent, wandering musicians, lectures on archaeology and travel, theatrical

performances, displays of antique and new Saabs and Volvos, crafts for children,encampments of Viking re-enactors (with sword fights and authentic costumes) and theSami (with tents and reindeer crafts), and for all ages, croquet with little Dala horses asthe wickets, and the 1,000-year-old Viking game of Kubb, that fill out the two-day event.On Sunday morning, a Scandinavian worship service involving Danish, Finnish,Norw egian and Swedish pastors is held in the attractive campus chapel.

Said one attendee, "I'm not Scandinavian, but after coming to the festival, I feellike I've learned a lot about Scan dinavia, and really would like to go there now ." Oh,yes, there is also a lottery at the festival, and by holding the winning ticket she might gether wish fulfilled!